The Love of Foliage
by moontide
Summary: Heck, even a trip to Disney land would have taught him more than 'Youth! An intensive program for the entrepreneurial student spirit'" ... or so Sasuke thought. A gift-fic for the marvelous various crimes. sasunaru goodness abounds!


Hello Fanfiction world!

This fic is actually the first of many inspired by a dream i have had (this is where you start to get worried, yes?). Fear not! I have tried my best to make it into a clear, hopefully good fanfic. It is embellished of course, but the main storyline is right from my subconscious. : ) My good friend various_crimes loved this dream so much that i dedicate this fic to her. Happy Super belated Christmas Jackal! Please enjoy the attempts at humor and romance and know things do tend to jump around (it was a dream you know and they can be rather tricksy...).

This is written in 3rd person limited and goes between Sasuke and Naruto because that is what my mind did during the dream. I hope it is not too confusing!

oh, and please excuse the title, it is late at night and i do loathe titling things...

disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. If i did... well... things would be rather different. ; )

* * *

The Love of Foliage

It really couldn't get any worse.

One break, _one_from the monotony of hundred pound textbooks, fifty page papers and semester-grade determining tests and he had to come here. Networking opportunity Kakashi Sensei had said, character building he had said, a valuable learning experience. Ha! Sleep, that would have been valuable, maybe a part time job. Heck, even a trip to Disney land would have taught him more than "_Youth_! An intensive program for the entrepreneurial student spirit!" When confronted with the horrific idea of actually attending this course, Sasuke had sensibly argued that his spirit was a bit tired. Kakashi had replied with "major requirement".

Two hours later Sasuke was packed and ready to leave.

Well, maybe not ready. Nothing short of a mind numbing concussion could have prepared him for the onslaught of 'youthful energy'… or green. The green buildings had been bad enough. The green food worse. The green t-shirt required to be worn to every activity had pushed him one step too far.

After a fateful encounter with the commencement bonfire, Sasuke's shirt had been deemed thoroughly demolished and therefore unable to be worn. Pity. The fact that a dozen or more t-shirts had followed his to a fiery grave was just an added bonus. Even the gushing tears of the program director, a bushed eye-browed man by the name of Gai, were not enough to deflate Sasuke's happiness at not having to see the hideous garment on every person he encountered.

Not to say Sasuke was happy. He thoroughly believed he had never been so unhappy in his life. Except maybe that time Itachi had stolen his toothbrush and used it to clean bedpans at the local hospital and then returned it without informing Sasuke… better not to think about that.

Yes, outside of that traumatizing experience, Sasuke had never been so miserable in his life. Not only was there no way to get around eating the green food save starving (and Sasuke was _not_going to die here in the middle of youthtopia) but also there was no getting out of the team building activities. None.

He had tried. The first day he was fully prepared to stay locked in his little cottage until the two weeks were over… only to find out there were no locks. He had been dragged out, in his pajamas he might add, by Gai himself and led immediately to a circle of twenty or so peers where they spent an hour pairing their names to an adjective and a food. He had obstinately remained "stoic Sasuke who likes salad", though his overenthusiastic councilor had tried to convince him to change it to "stupendous Sasuke who loves saba sashimi" as it was more in the mood of the program.

The second day he had claimed illness due to too much green food coloring but after meeting the nurse, a large-chested woman who looked ready to murder despite her obvious intoxication, decided that his intestines could handle a few more weeks of chemicals before rebelling in large bouts of projectile vomiting.

The third day he had resigned himself to the fact that he had one week and five days of springtime hell ahead of him and there was nothing he could do about it. So, instead of giving Gai anymore opportunities to show off Sasuke's sleeping garments, he smothered his pride and went to the assigned activities.

There was nothing good about them. Okay, so maybe he had enjoyed thrashing everyone at those trivia questions, and looking down at the others struggling to climb the easiest rock wall in history was pretty humorous, and winning first place in the talent competition had been rewarding (He had won the freedom to go out to eat with one of his friends and had almost cried at the opportunity to consume something its natural color).

But those had all been individual games. The majority of the activities were about team building and group communication, two things Sasuke found both pointless and stupid. The one they were playing at the moment was no exception.

They had to create a human web. It started with two people holding hands and leaning back so that they fully supported the others weight. Then, the rest of the students had to run up one by one and latch onto one or two others in the web, making sure they positioned themselves in the right location so the web did not overbalance and send everyone falling to the ground. It was supposed to illustrate how each member of a company had to rely on everyone else to pull their weight, literally.

Sasuke found this to be a waste of his time, though he seemed one of the few to think so. Shikamaru looked half asleep as he strolled over to grab onto Chouji to balance his side of the web. Shino's thoughts were unreadable under his tinted glasses, but Sasuke was sure he was not happy about Ino practically tearing his coat off as she hung onto his shoulders.

Everyone else though seemed cheerful as they swayed to and fro, waiting for someone to sprint over and steady the group. Sakura, who was in the very middle holding hands with a beaming Lee, giggled as Shikamaru's added weight caused her to lean back at a dangerous angle.

It was she who had bullied Sasuke into participating in this event instead of shuffleboard. He didn't know how shuffleboard was supposed to increase his youth, but it had seemed a safer option (that was until an angry Sakura had cracked her knuckles and demanded Sasuke join her activity).

He didn't know why she was so excited. There was nothing enjoyable about this game. Nothing at all! It required trust and waiting and someone he didn't really know _touching_ him in a situation from which he could not escape. There were no redeeming qualities to this activity. None. Not one little, adorable… laughing… sexy…

Okay, he was lying. One detail of this game made it worth getting out of bed and choking down green toast and watery, lime colored orange juice. That details name had just been called to sprint over, past an appreciative Sasuke, to find his place among his friends.

"Naruto!" Anko screamed. All of the birds in a fifty yard radius took flight in fear. Naruto though, didn't seem to mind her alarming volume. He simply grinned, calculated where he was most needed to right the now-off-balance cluster and ran to latch onto Tenten.

Sasuke twitched. Tenten giggled. Sasuke growled loud enough for Kiba to look down at his own stomach in confusion. Sasuke tried glaring at Tenten's shoulders as if he could detach them from Naruto's hands with his mind.

Or maybe just set her on fire.

He had had nothing against Tenten before this little game. She was the sanest of all the girls and one of the strongest. She had been second to reach the top of the rock wall and had joined Sasuke in chucking little pieces of wood at unsuspecting climbers. But now that she was touching Naruto and he was not, their amity was over. Sasuke rearranged his mental list.

To Kill:

1. Tentenreason: _Touching Naruto_

1. 2. Itachi reason: Toothbrush incident

2. 3. Kakashireason: perverted bastard who forced me to attend hell-on-earth

3. 4. Gaireason: creating said hell-on-earth

Yes, he had a new goal in life, one he could complete easily at that nights scavenger hunt as long as…

"Sasuke!" This time Anko scared a passing Hinata so much that the girl stumbled off the bordering path and fell into a bush. Kiba hurried over to make sure she was okay.

Sasuke was not thinking about Hinata. He was analyzing. It was simple to see that to balance out the group he needed to attach himself to Ino. She knew it too and was grinning with all the glee of a soon-to-be-satisfied self proclaimed Sasuke fangirl. Shino had figured it out as well, and was frowning at the thought of more weight pulling on his precious coat.

In truth, Sasuke was sure everyone knew what he was supposed to do. They all attended the same selective business university after all and had been grouped together many times. Sasuke, though he didn't work well with others, knew his grade and reputation were on the line and so was always willing to work for the team while at school.

That's why it came as a staggering surprise (to everyone but Sasuke and Sakura) that Sasuke did not walk over and grab onto Ino shoulders, making her the happiest woman in _Youth!_history. Business school was one thing, one stupid activity at a ludicrous camp was quite another. Sasuke could care less if they all fell, in fact, he was counting on it.

A second after Anko had screamed his name, Sasuke was spiriting with thus far unseen energy… right over to Naruto.

He clamped onto the other mans back, wrapping his arms securely around his chest and relishing the way the slightly smaller man fit into his embrace. The screeching "what the hell bastard!" fell on deaf ears as Naruto's hands started to pull away from Tenten and latched themselves onto Sasuke's arms.

With one small stagger both boys tilted backwards, Naruto screaming in confusion, Sasuke silent, a self satisfied smirk displayed proudly on his face.

~:~*SN*~:~-~:~*SN*~:~-~:~*SN*~:~

It really couldn't get any better.

Not only was he away from mounds of schoolwork but Naruto had been able to avoid going home to his over protective adoptive father and was instead having the time of his life at camp. Not that Iruka was a bad parent, he just refused to see that his adopted son was now _twenty_and perfectly able to do simple things, like pick out his own clothes (thought Sakura and one stuck up bastard like to comment on the apparently abysmal state of Naruto's wardrobe whenever they had the chance).

Naruto had no idea why most of the participating students had thrown their shirts into the fire on the first night. A t-shirt was a t-shirt right? Besides, green was perfect camouflage! He even enjoyed the moss colored buildings, thought the novelty of the colored food had worn out quickly when he had been dared by Kiba to devour a whole green chicken. He never thought he would throw up such an interesting hue.

To Naruto, the only problem with the camp was that there was no ramen. Not one bowl! Apparently the chemicals in the ramen were unreceptive to the dye, no matter how much was squeezed in. He had been quite depressed about it (having lived off of ramen for practically his whole life) until Sasuke had invited him to join in his out-of-camp dinner.

It had taken a whack on the head by Sakura to get Naruto to calm down enough to realize that Sasuke was probably not going to take him to a restaurant that served ramen, as Sasuke had a more discerning palate.

Oh how wrong she had been! Sasuke had not only taken Naruto out, he had let him choose the place. And so they had spent a few picture perfect hours devouring bowls and bowls of ramen at a little roadside restaurant. Okay, so Sasuke only had one and then had ordered some fish something (Naruto joked that is was stupendous saba sashimi until Sasuke threatened to gouge out Naruto's eyes with his chopsticks).

Though Sakura had kept Naruto up that night recounting every detail of the apparently significant meal, "_but don't you wonder why he chose you, his 'biggest rival'!"_, Naruto had tried not to think much of it. He knew he and Sasuke were often at odds, but he also knew that they had long, philosophical conversations on the dorm roof and hilarious nerf battles in the pool. He also knew that Sasuke was not as close with anyone else in their school, let alone this camp.

His weekly quota of ramen met, nothing could keep Naruto down for the next few days. He cloud gazed with Shikamaru in off hours, had marshmallow fights over the fire with Chouji, ran laps of youth with Lee and canoed with Tenten around the rather boggy lake.

Canoeing had been an experience. Naruto had never been good with boats. His bountiful energy was liable to dump him, and often everything else in the craft, into the water almost instantly. Tenten however, had been white water rafting so many times that her skill had outbalanced his lack. Their only problem occurred when the boat had gotten stuck in a patch of reeds. There they had met a rather friendly toad whom Naruto was able to imitate with frightening accuracy. Tenten had found this highly amusing as the toad was liable to jump in terror every time he heard his croak echoing back to him.

Yes, camp was wonderful. The weather had been perfect. It had rained only once, and that had been a sun shower in which Naruto and Kiba had capered around, trying to pull Ino and Hinata, who had been passing by with a bag of chocolate and some magazines, out into the rain with them. Ino had squealed and run, leaving Hinata at the mercy of the two boys. When Naruto had grabbed her arm however, she had fainted and Kiba had stopped frolicking immediately to take her to the infirmary.

This day was no different in its perfection. Naruto had risen early to eat with Sakura and Lee, run some laps, then bounced over to his first activity.

The human web seemed like a superb idea. Naruto had always been the one who held his group members together in time of stress, reminding them that they needed each other to be successful. This was illustrating his thoughts perfectly! He had no doubt that their group would find it simple to complete a balanced web.

He had watched intently as each person joined the web, prepared to run immediately once it was his turn. Naruto rocked from his heels to his toes, grinning in anticipation. When his name was called he was happy to see that he did not have to run to Ino, and thus aid in her Shino strangulation, but to Tenten. He grabbed onto her shoulders with a laugh and a loud 'crooooaak' that made her giggle in recollection.

Now only Sasuke and Kiba were left from their group, then some students from a sister school would have to join on to symbolize the interconnection between international businesses. Though Naruto was enjoying himself, it was almost time for the barbeque and he didn't want to get there late and find out everything had been eaten. Luckily, he knew Sasuke and Kiba would not make a mistake in this sort of thing, therefore guaranteeing the speedy completion of the activity.

Sasuke's name was screamed and Naruto watched Ino's back intently. The look on her face was causing his stomach to churn uneasily. He knew she had always had a thing for Sasuke, that had been apparent since the first time she laid eyes on him. Sasuke however, never looked twice at Ino. In fact, he had been rather rude in the past when they had been assigned to work together. Naruto knew Ino was intelligent, but whenever Sasuke was around she dissolved into a girly mess.

Though he knew perfectly well why his stomach was a seething mess, it was still unsettling to feel. He knew that Sasuke wanted nothing to do with Ino and that usually eased him, but there was something about this incident or maybe her look, as if she was going to devour Sasuke slowly with her eyes (and the rest of her if she had any say), that made Naruto wish he had chosen to hold onto Ino instead, just to save Sasuke from this fate.

He was just trying to push past the irritating image of Sasuke wrapping his arms around a swooning Ino like they were on some stupid romance novel cover, when someone grabbed him from behind. Naruto's first instinct was to turn and punch the offender in the face but just as he was loosening his fingers from Tenten's shoulders his senses kicked into gear.

That smell. He would know Sasuke's scent anywhere. Maybe it was because he had slept in Sasuke's bed when forced out of his room freshman year by the representative tie on the doorknob, or perhaps from when he had spent spring break taking a road trip with Sasuke to the beach and had sat for endless hours alone with him in the car, or because he just spent so much time with the bastard that his smell was permanently etched into Naruto's subconscious. Whatever the reason, Naruto knew Sasuke's scent.

Sasuke smelled fantastic.

Naruto's mind always got a little fuzzy whenever he was in close proximity to his friend. He blamed it on excessive amounts of cologne making him lightheaded, but knew this was not true. Sasuke smelled just as good, if not better, right after an evening shower, or at the end of a soccer game when he was drenched in sweat, or right in the morning when he would blink his eyes open, stretch his arms over his head and greet Naruto with the ever articulate 'hn'.

His face reddening, Naruto refused cave to the wonderful feeling of warm arms wrapped securely around him (_him_, not Ino) and shouted, as was his usual response to most of the things Sasuke did.

"What the hell bastard!" He could practically feel Sasuke smirking. This was probably some stupid display of how much Sasuke hated this game. He had messed it up on purpose! He was making Naruto blush and daydream all for nothing!

Angry, though he would never admit to himself why, Naruto grabbed onto Sasuke's hands, trying to pry him off. Of course he forgot he needed to hold onto Tenten to stay upright and so with a misplace step he felt himself falling backward into Sasuke's chest. The last thing he saw before the spotless blue sky was Sakura watching from afar, grinning from ear to ear.

~:~*SN*~:~-~:~*SN*~:~-~:~*SN*~:~

He had to be in heaven.

Sasuke had never really believed in heaven; a bunch of people in robes playing harps had not appealed to him in the slightest. But, he thought as Naruto held his arms tightly as they fell, if a personalized heaven existed, this would be his.

Not that he desired Naruto only to hug but as heaven was usually a place for virtue and what he really wanted to do to Naruto was smothered in delicious sin, this would be enough. Naruto, gripping his arms in need, his heart beat frantic against Sasuke's palm. It would only be better if Naruto were turned around so that he could bury his face in Sasuke's chest…

Then it was ruined.

Damn that Anko! Damn those Suna University brats! Seeing the two fall, they had decided that a new game was in order. Crush Sasuke. He knew their true reasoning was that they were running over to show that they would support a failing company with which they were on good terms blah blah blah… all Sasuke knew was that one second he was floating in bliss and the next he was smashed up against the breasts of that loud girl with the crazy blonde hair, her arms supporting his sides.

Naruto's hands detached from his arms and reached out to Tenten again as he tried to help by pulling himself back up. Sasuke was having none of that. He clung to Naruto, which resulted in Tenten falling back to sandwich Naruto between herself and Sasuke, which sent Temari off balance so she had to be steadied by her equally annoying brother.

Somehow, in his confusion, Sasuke realized he had created a chain reaction that had resulted in most of the group clinging to each other in a compressed line, Lee at the front trying in vain to hold everyone up and Gaara at the back, his glare enough to keep Kankuro from falling on him.

Though he detested being pressed up against any woman, especially one like Temari, the feeling of Naruto pushed so intimately into Sasuke's front was making his mind reel. Sasuke was caught between wanting to jerk Naruto out of the line and carry him off to some secluded grove for one-on-one team building and staying put so as not to waste precious moment of contact.

Naruto, after struggling a bit, seemed to realize that the added pressure of a dozen bodies before him could not be removed so easily. Instead of continued wriggling he relaxed. Sasuke suddenly had a face full of sunny hair as Naruto leaned his head back onto Sasuke's shoulder.

Half of Sasuke's brain idly wondered if he could die from so much pressure on his rapidly beating heart. The other half was trying to restrain him from smothering his face in golden locks. It would be very undignified of him to start nuzzling Naruto's head, no matter how great the temptation.

While Sasuke battled with his mind, it seemed everyone else was straightening things out. Most of the people in the front of the line were upright now, standing a bit farther apart. Too soon Naruto righted himself but, and Sasuke's smirk almost doubled in size, did nothing to remove Sasuke's arms from around him. Naruto simply let them fall loosely around his stomach.

His mind whirring with this unusual occurrence, Sasuke almost missed Kankuro shouting: "This is awesome! We're like a Conga line! Whoever is up front, to the barbeque!"

Conga line? Oh _hell_ no.

With strength he had forgotten he possessed, Sasuke grabbed Naruto's hand and wrenched him out of the line.

"I've got to get something from my room." He muttered as an excuse, pulling Naruto away from the field in which they had been working. He was afraid Naruto, who loved any kind of line dancing, especially the conga, would tear himself away and go back, but he did not. Instead his said 'yeah, me too' in a distant sort of way and followed close behind.

Out of the corner of his eye Sasuke saw Sakura catching up to them and cursed her in every language he could remember, which amounted to quite a long string of expletives.

"You guys going back to your rooms?" There was something in her voice Sasuke couldn't place, a sort of smugness he had never heard coming from her before. Neither Naruto nor Sasuke answered her. "Just Sasuke's room?" She prodded. Sasuke glanced at Naruto whose whole face had turned red. He tried to hide his delight as Sakura turned back to him, obviously testing his reaction as well.

"Need to change for the barbeque." Naruto mumbled, trying to hide his discomfort.

"And you need Sasuke's help with that?"

Naruto turned a dozen shades of scarlet. "Sakura!" He tried to hit her in the arm but she dodged. "Shut up! The bastard is just headed in the same direction as we are. Stop being gross."

Sasuke nearly lost it at the 'we'. There was no 'we' unless Naruto was referring to Sasuke and himself. He knew Sakura had no feelings for Naruto or for Sasuke anymore but she was still getting in the way.

"Since when is helping a friend in need gross? Iruka always said you can't dress yourself and I know Sasuke agrees."

Oh yes, he did agree, though undressing Naruto seemed like a much better option. Peeling off that hideous green shirt to expose the sun-kissed skin beneath, listening to Naruto wine about being cold or embarrassed as he feebly tried to cover himself… wait! Sakura was just trying to distract him from getting rid of her! Sasuke was on to her plan. His eyes darted over and sure enough she was grinning at him as if she could read his mind.

"Isn't Lee looking for you?" Sasuke said icily. Sakura's smile didn't falter.

"I told him I'd be there soon and to save me a spot."

"Ino said something about needing you to help her pick out shorts." This was true, the other day Ino had bored their whole dinner table to death talking about the outfits she would have to wear for each occasion as to optimize their usage.

There was no way Sakura could get around this one. Naruto looked at her with sad eyes that plainly said 'how could you abandon such a close friend in her time of need! Have I taught you nothing about camaraderie!'. With a small noise of affirmation Sakura waved and skipped off up the nearest hill, not, Sasuke noticed, in the direction of Ino's cottage.

Finally, they were alone.

~:~*SN*~:~-~:~*SN*~:~-~:~*SN*~:~

What kind of sadistic punishment was this?

One minute he was secretly admiring Sasuke's scent and the next he was practically being spooned for everyone to see! Well, at least in a moment Sasuke would fall on his back which would probably break his hold so Naruto could escape and not embarrass himself further.

But Naruto could still feel that damn smirk! Sasuke was expecting this fall. He would make sure to not let go of Naruto as they hit the ground. Or if he did, he'd grab Naruto before he could get away and pull him back or use the fall as an excuse to roll over and trap Naruto beneath him and then do something embarrassing like Kiba's dog Akamaru and that retriever in the park last week and Naruto didn't know what he would do!

Wait… didn't know?

He would kick Sasuke off of course and yell something about molestation. But, what if he didn't, what if he just lay there at let Sasuke do whatever he was planning to do? His heart raced nervously at the thought and he tried his best to dismiss it.

_Besides_! Why was Naruto assuming Sasuke would do something in the first place? Sasuke would probably slip out from under him at the last minute and chuckle as Naruto hit the ground. That seemed more his style. Either way, Sasuke would smirk and everyone else would laugh awkwardly and then they'd go eat and pretend nothing had happened. No one would be any the wiser to Naruto's undisclosed attraction.

Naruto wasn't entirely stupid; he knew others saw that his relationship with Sasuke was different than most guy/guy relationships. But Sasuke wasn't like most guys; they had to figure that, right? It didn't mean anything beyond a close friendship, yes?

So what if they had slept in the same bed? Naruto had needed somewhere to crash and Sasuke refused to have a guest sleep on the floor almost as adamantly as he refused to leave his own bed. He had said it was his Uchiha upbringing rearing its ugly head.

And who cared if they spent all their holidays together? They were best friends. Sasuke didn't like too many other people around and Naruto was not going to abandon him to spend break alone. Sasuke had already spent too much of his life alone.

Sakura seemed to realize there was something more though. She always wanted all the details of his time alone with Sasuke. The previous year, when he had refused to tell her anything about Christmas break unless she told him _why_she wanted a play-by-play, she had confided that she was almost one hundred percent sure Sasuke wanted into Naruto's pants.

After much of Naruto's spluttering and destruction of perfectly good textbooks she added that she was almost one hundred percent sure Sasuke also wanted into Naruto's heart.

After a few minutes of silence, Naruto had said that Sasuke was already in his heart… as a best friend. He had left without saying anything else. Sakura had not mentioned it since and Naruto, not wanting her to think on it further and see that the attraction was mutual (if it existed on Sasuke's side in the first place, which he was sure it didn't) did not say anything either.

But being smashed up to Sasuke had a way of bringing back those worries of so many months ago. Naruto wasn't a coward, but he really didn't want to deal with Sakura's questions, let alone allow Sasuke hear Sakura voice her thoughts as she definitely would if she could see him now. It was one thing to talk to Sasuke about his conflicted feelings over a cup of tea alone after much mental preparation, quite another to try and speak coherently in a mass of people when his ass was…

Okay, he needed to get away now.

Naruto reached out and tried to grab onto Tenten but had not counted on the extra weight of Sasuke behind him. Instead of pulling himself to safety, he ended up with arms full of a flustered Tenten. This was not good. He could hear the sound of other bodies falling onto one another, the shrieks of the girls only adding to the general confusion.

Naruto wiggled, trying to get out of line as quickly as possible. Sasuke's breath slid across the back of his neck, tickling his skin pleasantly, _too_pleasantly. Which dream was this more like, the one where they were parachuting together over the slopes of Mt. Fuji or the one where Sasuke the shirtless firefighter lured Naruto the swashbuckling pirate into a haunted house and snuck up on him from behind and…?

Struggle harder Naruto!

It was no use, he couldn't move an inch. Just wait until Kiba saw him, or Ino shouted something about him taking her man, or Sakura gave him one of those telling winks!

But… they were all caught in the line, right? Except Kiba who would be too busy making sure Hinata was okay after her fall. No one could really see him… even if they did it would just look like the predicament of everyone else, yes?

With a deep breath and much trepidation, Naruto relaxed, leaning back on Sasuke.

He wasn't soft per say, there was too much muscle for that, but for some reason Naruto felt very comfortable. He normally hated that Sasuke was taller. Naruto had grown quite a bit since his school days when he had been the shortest boy in his class, but of course Sasuke had matured too, the gap between their heights closing by a few centimeters only. But now it seemed perfectly okay to his bewildered mind that his head fit comfortably into the crook of Sasuke's neck.

That smell, it was driving him crazy. This close it was ten times as potent. He wondered if Sasuke could feel his heart beating, Sasuke's arms were so tight around his chest. If he could, what was he thinking? Had he betted on this kind of reaction right from the beginning? Did Sasuke know his clinging would upset the line this much? If so, did he attribute Naruto's quickened pulse to anger at the ruination of the game?

The thought that Sasuke might believe he was mad with him was not a pleasant one. It stung Naruto like a scorpion, poisoning his rationality. They had two weeks of freedom before they would both be buried so far under their work that he might only see Sasuke at mealtimes, if that. He would not let this school year end as the last had, with both of them scrambling for plausible excuses to vacation together. If Sasuke didn't like him in the same way, well, then he would at least know he was better off spending more time alone. If Sasuke did have the feelings Sakura insisted he possessed then…

Tenten pushed against Naruto for a second, then stood straight. Naruto's mind scrambled around, not sure what to make him do. He didn't really want to stand up straight and loose the warmth at his back, but it would be extremely strange for him to continue to cuddle into Sasuke when he had room to move away.

He stood slowly, every inch of his mind attuned to the arms wrapped around his chest; his last physical connection to Sasuke. His heart nearly stopped when they refused to unclasp, merely sliding down to embrace his waist.

What was Sasuke doing!? Did he just not notice the movement? Half of Naruto's mind chastised him for thinking like some love struck girl, the other ran around like a headless chicken, trying in vain to sort things out.

In his immense confusion he almost missed Kankuro shout something about a conga. The next second he had been violently hauled away from everyone else, his wrist grasped firmly in Sasuke's hand.

"I've got to get something from my room." Sasuke said, his voice oddly tense as he walked quickly away from the field, Naruto stumbling along in his wake.

Though he was still trying to process Sasuke's unusual behavior, Naruto's mind was able to recognize that Sasuke ≠ conga. This usual response from Sasuke, of gracefully fleeing from anything he disliked, jolted Naruto back into some semblance of reality.

"Yeah, me too." He muttered, his hand slipping out of Sasuke's as he caught up. If Sasuke's continuing hug had meant anything, that meaning had slipped away with his flawless return to normality. Sasuke's visibly unfazed face meant he thought his actions were nothing out of the ordinary, a usual occurrence between friends.

Speaking of friends… hurried footsteps behind him alerted Naruto to the approach of Sakura. Turning to greet her, his welcome had died on his lips as he caught sight of the look on her face, one of utter glee and complete understanding of everything had just transpired.

"You guys going back to your rooms?" The innocence in her tone betrayed her intentions. Naruto glared his hardest at her, but it did nothing but make her grin grow. If only Sasuke would turn around! His glare could melt glaciers.

"Just Sasuke's room?" She continued. Naruto almost tripped over his own feet. He knew the question would, in most situations, be an innocent one. Who cared if he was going to Sasuke's room? They could be about to play cards or lounge around and read some books or have some intense arm wrestling matches. There was no reason that her question should imply anything more… intimate. At the thought of things they could be doing in Sasuke's room while everyone else was at the barbeque, Naruto felt blood rush to his face.

"Need to change for the barbeque." Naruto mumbled, his mind catching on the subject. It wasn't a stupid excuse. Ino had made him want to drown himself in his pea soup the previous night by talking about her numerous outfit changes.

"And you need Sasuke's help with that?" Instantly images of Sasuke helping him undress exploded in Naruto's mind. Pale hands sliding up his chest, a low rumble of laughter, the small smirk that would spread over Sasuke's face as he'd push Naruto onto the bed…

"Sakura!" Naruto felt his face burst into flames of embarrassment. On instinct he moved to punch her in the arm, but his movement was weak and she avoided it easily. "Shut up!" If physical force was not going to work he'd have to rely on his second mode of attack, verbal assault. "The bastard is just headed in the same direction as we are. Stop being gross."

"Since when is helping a friend in need gross? Iruka always said you can't dress yourself and I know Sasuke agrees." This was true, and it was quite annoying that she could talk her way out of a statement that easily, not even implying that she knew the connotations of her words. To Naruto's surprise Sasuke seemed just as aggravated, if not more so.

"Isn't Lee looking for you?" His voice was cold and Naruto, who had immense experience interpreting Sasuke-speak, knew he was really saying 'Get away. Now.' Sakura though, seemed to get the gist… and ignored it completely.

"I told him I'd be there soon and to save me a spot." Her smile was sunny. This did nothing to change the expression on the boys' faces.

"Ino said something about needing you to help her pick out shorts." Yes! Sasuke had gotten her! There was no way she could deny that Ino had asked her for help. Naruto didn't know why he was helping Sasuke get rid of Sakura, maybe it was because he wanted a chance to talk to Sasuke about their plans following the end of the camp, or because he could still feel the imprint of Sasuke's arms around his waist, a pleasantly warm tingle that set his mind alight with possibilities. Not that he believed any of those possibilities would come to pass, but if Sakura were around the likelihood would be a definite zero.

He stared at Sakura with the gaze he always gave her when a friend was in need. She could never deny that sad pout. When Kiba had needed someone to drive him to the store to buy some dog food, Sakura had relented only under Naruto's forsaken look. When the student store had run out of ramen one bat of the eyelash got Naruto a cupboard full upon his return to his room after class and a little note saying Sakura had skipped aerobics to go get it.

This time, though he knew she was trying her best to fight it, there was no way Sakura could remain under that gaze. With one last aggravated look at Naruto she sighed, waved and hurried away. The second she was over the hill a silence fell so thick it stopped Naruto from walking.

They were alone.

~:~*SN*~:~-~:~*SN*~:~-~:~*SN*~:~

_Speak Sasuke! Say something! Make sure he comes back with you and then lock the door and have your wicked way with him… wait, no lock. Plan B! Use superglue to keep the door closed. Added bonus that he can't run away. But you have no glue… okay, plan C! Tie Naruto to something in the room. Super bonus if he thinks it's kinky! If he doesn't there is always the duck-_

"- gardens are pretty nice here, you know, better than at school."

Duck gardens? That made no sense. Sasuke turned to look at Naruto for some kind of clarification. What he found was the personification of 'uncomfortable'. Naruto was fidgety, his eyes darting from the oak trees on the right to the cabins on the left. What was making him so ill at ease? Sasuke took a second to think back and analyze Naruto's last words. The scenery. Naruto had resorted to talking about the scenery.

Not that this explained why Naruto was as jumpy as Kiba on Red Bull. Perhaps he just felt bad for making Sakura leave? Maybe he could feel Sasuke's intentions? Did Naruto have something against being tied up? That would be a shame. Either way, a nervous Naruto was not what Sasuke wanted at the moment.

"hn." His words or lack thereof, had the desired effect. Naruto's eyes locked onto him, an annoyed scowl crawling quickly onto his face. His arms relaxed and even though his hands balled into fists Sasuke was far from concerned.

"That's not even a word! 'Yes, Naruto, the trees are niiice.' Come on Sasuke, it's not that hard just open your mouth and-"

"Did Iruka ever teach you how to _close_ yours?"

"You..!! Didn't your parents teach you how to speak in full sentences bastard!"

Banter. This was normal, this was safe. The uncomfortable air that had hung about the pair of them was lost in the inane words Sasuke knew they both didn't really mean. This did not mean he was going to back down on his earlier plans. He was sure there was something he could use as rope in his cabin and if Naruto didn't like it as first, well, he'd learn to, Sasuke had no doubt about that.

Naruto was still shouting something, but Sasuke was having trouble following it. The picture Sakura had planted in his mind of a half naked Naruto kept flitting through his brain, keeping Sasuke's mind focused on the proposed cabin activities and not on the current conversation. A hand on his shoulder almost made Sasuke jump. Instead his eyes shot to the side to pin down the perpetrator.

"Hey" Naruto's voice was soft, his face gentled. "I'm sorry about the… parent thing. I didn't mean it like that." Damn! Cute, brotherly, concerned Naruto was not the one he wanted at the moment either! Obviously when he had failed to respond to the repeated insults Naruto thought he had taken them the wrong way and become distressed. Sasuke inwardly sighed.

If he responded too nonchalantly Naruto would think he was still upset and probably tip-toe around him for the next hour. If he was too blunt Naruto would be offended that he was so harsh when Naruto was just trying to be nice and apologize. That would just make Naruto leave.

"Don't worry about it… dumbass." Sasuke shrugged off Naruto's hand, much to his own displeasure, and started walking. When Naruto followed he knew he was in safe water. Naruto fell into step beside him close enough to try and be a comfort but far enough so that Sasuke couldn't bump their hands together or do any of those other silly things Sakura swore worked in real life, not just the movies.

Though the tense atmosphere was gone, the mischievous tension that had been strung between them since the web activity had also disappeared. They were back to being best friends. Brothers even, sharing the pain of lost parents and masked emotions.

Without warning, there was a rustle and Sakura practically jumped out of a bush behind them. Naruto blinked confusedly at her. Sasuke simply stared. Thought her arrival was decidedly odd, her sudden return brought an unexpected sense of relief. If anyone could properly interrupt a brotherly moment it was Sakura. She always meant well, but he knew she found it hard to be the third wheel to a pair such as he and Naruto.

Though… Sasuke had noticed her mood had changed since last year's Christmas break. She had come back from coffee with Naruto with a twinkle in her eyes and a new vocabulary of phrases to help her slip away from any conversation the three of them had been having with eerie ease.

When they were watching a movie, a stupid romantic comedy she had spent hours coercing them into seeing with her, Sakura claimed to have promised to pick Ino up from her yoga class and left Sasuke, Naruto and a rather uncomfortable sex scene. Last time they had been roller skating she had literally dumped a balance-challenged Naruto into Sasuke's arms and run off to help Hinata walk Akamaru since Kiba was out of town for the day.

The worst had been when she had decided to hold her twentieth birthday party at the local water park, just the three of them. It had been a surprise, well, for Sasuke and Naruto at least. She had packed them into the car claiming a simple drive to the ice cream place. When they arrived at the park she revealed her true intentions. Sasuke, both the hater of amusement parks (so many damn people!) and ever the quick thinker, had told her that it was impossible for himself and Naruto to go with her since they had no bathing suits.

Sakura, it seemed, had been one step ahead of Sasuke and pulled out handkerchiefs. No. Speedos. Sasuke would have refused but a pouting-birthday-girl Sakura made a pouting-good-friend Naruto and a pouting-good-friend Naruto always trumped an angry-that-he-was-manipulated Sasuke.

It had been bad enough to be waltzing around a packed amusement park in a Speedo, worse when halfway through the day Sakura had disappeared, giving Naruto the tasks of having fun and most importantly, not allowing Sasuke's fair skin to burn.

On one hand, letting Naruto lather him with suntan lotion every half hour had allowed Sasuke to live out one of his fantasies, on the other, said fantasy was not advised while wearing something smaller than his usual underwear. At least their antics had convinced all the drooling women they were both gay. Too bad Naruto hadn't gotten get the hint.

The same smile that had graced Sakura's lips every time she had set up one of those awkward moments was on her face now as she approached the two boys. Sasuke watched her impish grin falter as she noticed the changed atmosphere, but her eyes remained calculating.

"Still standing around here? Are you two lost? Sasuke, I thought you had a perfect sense of direction." Sasuke responded with a 'hn' and turned his gaze away from hers. Though he wasn't looking, Sasuke knew she had turned her attention to Naruto, a bad liar under anyone's stare.

"Just… admiring the trees." Naruto replied lamely.

"Ohh… the _trees_. I see. They are pretty dashing this time of year." Sakura winked and Sasuke rejoiced as that beautiful, beautiful blush returned to Naruto's cheeks. He felt his old smirk grow. "Though I think they need a bit more… taming." At this both Sasuke and Naruto simply stared, Sasuke looking at Sakura like she had gone mad, Naruto growing increasingly more flushed. "They look pruned but there's still a certain wildness about them. Or is that what you like about the _trees_Naruto?"

"Wha-? Sakura! I don't-! Stop say-! Shut up!" Naruto was spluttering now and Sasuke was transfixed by how cute he looked. What they had lost just a few minutes previous had returned full force, the brotherly atmosphere gone in a flash. Sakura, in her own twisted way, was a miracle worker. Sasuke had no idea what trees had to do with anything, but Naruto was back to his normal self. Well, his I-was-just-spooned-by-Sasuke-and-now-he-is-going-to-drag-me-back-to-a-cabin-and-do-unspeakable-things-to-me self.

"Well anyway, Sasuke and I will leave you and the trees alone then." Sakura pranced over to Sasuke, intertwined her arm with his and was pulling him away before Sasuke could stop and think.

"What do you…? Hey! Wait!" Naruto yelled from somewhere behind them.

"Sakura." Sasuke hissed icily as she marched him down the path. He tried to stop but her frightening strength kept him moving. Helping get Naruto back in that adorable mood was one thing, kidnapping Sasuke away from that Naruto was another.

"I leave for five seconds and you manage to ruin everything." Sakura muttered as if speaking to an unruly child, her eyes resolutely forward instead of meeting Sasuke's irritated stare.

"What are you-." Sasuke began, but she squeezed his arm. "Ouch! Sakura, what the hell-"

"Naruto tripped and fell in the stream and scratched up his knees. You helped him get back to the cabin so he could wash it out and put on some bandages. That should give you some time before people start wondering." Her words were light, as if she were planning a picnic for the pair of them. Sasuke hadn't been this confused in years. First trees now streams and bandages!

"What are you talking about?" Sasuke asked, but before he could get an answer from her she suddenly let go and pushed Sasuke to the side right as Naruto launched himself between them.

"Wait for me you twoooaaahhh!! Ow! Fuck that hurt! Damn it! Why the hell did you move you inconsiderate son of a…"

Naruto had landed hard on the gravely path, his exclamations of pain violent enough to prove that he was in no real danger. Sasuke found himself next to Naruto in a second, helping him onto his feet. Naruto winced and looked down at his slightly bloody knees.

"Ow! Damn it Sasuke what was that about?"

"I didn't…" Sasuke faltered, Naruto's eyes narrowed and Sasuke knew it was because it was highly unusual for him to stutter. "Sakura!" Sasuke looked up hastily, ready to demand what that insane girl had been thinking but she was nowhere to be seen.

"I'm okay bastard, let me go." Naruto said and Sasuke noticed the vehemence in his voice was diminished and that blush still glowed faintly on Naruto's face.

"No."

~:~*SN*~:~-~:~*SN*~:~-~:~*SN*~:~

_No no! Don't let it fall into uncomfortable silence Naruto! Then he'll shut down and you won't get a word out of him for an hour! Because 'hn' is so NOT a word! Just start off with something casual and work your way up to talking about… whatever this is that's been happening. He didn't keep his arms around you for no reason! He didn't run up and grab onto you because he thought it would be funny, this is Sasuke we are talking about. You have to say something eventually, do it now while you have some spec of courage. Now… now… NOW!_

"I've been meaning to compliment Gai sensei, the garden's are pretty nice here, you know, better than at school." Smooth Naruto, real smooth. Talk about plants. Everyone knows Sasuke is just riveted by foliage.

"hn." Naruto stared. Sasuke did not just say 'hn'. They were one sentence into a conversation and he was already closing himself off. This was unacceptable! Naruto wanted to have a heart to heart about his deep seated feelings for his sworn enemy-turned-best-friend with said best friend and all he got was a 'hn'. Granted he had started the talk with a mention of Gai sensei, but still!

"That's not even a word! 'Yes, Naruto, the trees are niiice.' Come on Sasuke, it's not that hard just open your mouth and-"

"Did Iruka ever teach you how to _close_yours?" How was that fair! How did Sasuke know Iruka always chided him about talking with his mouth full! Was there some conspiracy going on or something!

"You..!! Didn't your parents teach you how to speak in full sentences bastard! I mean, I know your little brain has trouble understanding words and maybe your vocal chords are underdeveloped from no use but that doesn't mean you can just resort to grunts when you want to…Sasuke? Hey, Sasuke?"

Maybe he was wrong, but didn't a playful repartee have to be between two people? Naruto would ask Mr. Walking Dictionary but it was said dictionary that was not speaking at the moment.

Had he said something wrong? An icy fear spreading through him, Naruto racked his brain to remember what he had just yelled out. Something about trees… vocal chords…grunting…? Damn. Sasuke's parents. A touchy subject at any time let alone when it was brought out like that; unexpectedly in a stupid joke. As he had lost his as well, Naruto usually naturally avoided any mention of parents to avoid his own discomfort. But he was so relaxed around Sasuke that even his self-imposed barriers fell without a thought.

This had to be fixed immediately. Seeing Sasuke with such a far away gaze tore at Naruto's heart. He hurried over to him, an apology forming in his mind. Comforting was something at which Naruto was exceedingly good.

"Hey" Naruto didn't have to try to sound apologetic, it oozed out of every word. Hurting Sasuke was the last thing he ever wanted to do. "I'm sorry about the… parent thing. I didn't mean it like that." He hoped that would be enough. Sasuke didn't like to draw things out. Either he accepted the apology right away and they moved on or he remained upset for the rest of the afternoon. Not that Naruto wouldn't be trying to make him feel better every agonizing minute. With Sasuke's continued silence, Naruto began formulating the rest of his speech.

"Don't worry about it… dumbass." Naruto was tempted to call Sasuke out for the name, but he knew it was only to reassure him that there was no harm done. If Sasuke had just told him not to worry it would be a sign to panic. A don't-think-about-my-pain-I-can-handle-it Sasuke was not a fun companion.

Sasuke started to walk away so Naruto hurried to catch up, knowing Sasuke wanted him to. Well, at least they were back on normal ground. Of course, normal was not what Naruto desired. Walking like this, with that frown on Sasuke's face, there was no way he'd even think of bringing up the events of the web-building activity. It just felt wrong to ask Sasuke if he had any repressed feelings for Naruto when Naruto had just insulted his family.

His mood growing steadily more depressed with each step, Naruto almost didn't notice the presence behind them. When Sasuke stopped walking however and spun around, he found himself turning too to come face to face with a grinning Sakura. He blinked, wondering why in the world she was over there. Wasn't Ino's cottage the other direction?

"Still standing around here? Are you two lost? Sasuke, I thought you had a perfect sense of direction." Naruto turned his gaze to Sasuke. For someone who had been pushing the pink haired girl away just minutes before he seemed rather unruffled by her return.

"hn." Damn him! Damn Sasuke for not making up some good excuse! He knew Naruto couldn't lie, especially to Sakura. Did he want her to find out that they had just had an awkward moment and gotten into a mini fight over a conversation that started with trees?

"Just… admiring the trees." An excellent comeback… if he were seventy years older and had sunstroke. Naruto knew she could see right through him and would bring about some witty and highly embarrassing retort.

"Ohh… the _trees_. I see. They are pretty dashing this time of year." There it was. She couldn't have just let it slide. Noooo, she had to go and compare Sasuke to trees! Not something else remotely innocent lying about them in nature, like ducks (just look at his hair!) or the wind (always snatching your damn papers away). No. She had to compare him to trees and put _that_ image in Naruto's head when he had just been trying to come to terms with his feelings, not his libido.

"Though I think they need a bit more… taming." Naruto swore he really had sunstroke this time, why else would he feel so hot? He was sure his face was beat red.

But taming? The first image that flashed into his mind was tigers at the circus. He didn't think Sasuke would appreciate being 'tamed'. Probably get free and tie Naruto up instead. He'd always guessed Sasuke would go for something like that, kinky bastard. But trees didn't need taming! Geez, could Sakura have been any more obvious with her innuendos?!

"They look pruned but there's still a certain wildness about them. Or is that what you like about the _trees_Naruto?" She had that look again. That one where she knew she had won. It was like that one time when he had played strip poker with her and Lee. In the end he had been butt naked, trying to hide behind Lee who was down to one strategically placed sock while Sakura, fully clothed, raked the cash she had won into her bulging purse.

"Wha-? Sakura! I don't-! Stop say-! Shut up!" He was making no sense. He wasn't even sure if he could think sense anymore. One minute he was comforting Sasuke like a brother, the next his mind was supplying images with himself tied up in a circus with almost naked Lees running around while fireman-Sasuke climbed out of a tree and Sakura's head loomed over them all, cackling.

"Well anyway, Sasuke and I will leave you and the trees alone then." Wait? Sakura leaving = good. Sakura leaving = Naruto + trees. But Sakura leaving = Sasuke leaving and Sasuke = trees so how could Sakura + Sasuke leaving = Naruto + trees?! Gah! Even basic math had deserted him! Naruto shook his head, trying to clear it of all thoughts involving imaginary Sasuke and transitive logic and instead tried to focus on what was going on in reality.

"What do you… Hey! Wait!" Naruto yelled, cursing his overactive imagination as he broke into a sprint. He didn't really want Sakura to stick around, she would just make things worse, but the string of thought from his fantasy had connected to his heart and his earlier decision to tell Sasuke how he felt. This might not be the perfect time, but with them was there ever?

Tonight, the only night everyone else would be busy somewhere else, might be the last time he'd have to talk to Sasuke before school and finals and summer jobs and internships and overwhelming obligations. Sure, he'd lasted this long without telling Sasuke and in theory he could go on forever without saying a thing. But everyone had their breaking point, hadn't this afternoon been his when he'd literally tumbled into Sasuke's arms and not been rejected? Wasn't that something?

Sakura and Sasuke were mumbling, and both eager to know what they were saying and reeling in his own epiphany, Naruto drove right between them.

He had done this many times before. They'd always caught him somehow. Usually Sakura just grabbed his shoulder while Sasuke took the brunt of the force, catching Naruto around the chest. Naruto had come to look at it as some kind of binding friendship ritual bringing the three of them together in some indestructible chain. He'd slip without Sakura supporting his side and fall flat on his face without trusting that Sasuke would stop him.

It seemed this time however, that the other two were not in the mood for displaying their bond of friendship. One second he was about to land on them, the next there was only the alarming sense of dirt rushing toward his face.

"Wait for me you twoooaaahhh!! Ow! Fuck that hurt! Damn it! Why the hell did you move you inconsiderate son of a…" That stung. Damn people putting rocks on the trails! Damn rocks for being so pointy! Damn Sasuke for not being there to…

Okay, never mind.

Sasuke was right there, slinging Naruto's arm over his shoulder, his enthralling scent making Naruto's already confused head spin. Feeling something wet he glanced down to see cuts on his knees slowly oozing blood. It was nothing serious though. He healed quickly and shallow wounds, though they bled, would probably not even need bandages.

"Ow! Damn it Sasuke what was that about?" His voice was a little groggy, but Naruto didn't think Sasuke noticed. He was distracted.

"I didn't…" Naruto waited for him to continue, but Sasuke merely stopped, stared at Naruto, then whipped his head around and called for Sakura. Naruto looked up too, but she was gone. That was odd, she hadn't even stuck around to see if he was alright.

That inconsiderate woman! She'd be getting an earful right after… damn Sasuke smelled so good. And his body was pleasantly strong and warm against Naruto's side. This wasn't the first time Sasuke had helped him limp away from an injury, but it was the first he did so in silence, his head turned slightly so that every breath tickled the fine hairs on Naruto's neck.

"I'm okay bastard, let me go." That damn blush was back, but Naruto knew it would only get worse if he allowed Sasuke to continue to hold him. Besides, he wasn't a weakling, these scrapes were nothing. Sasuke didn't need to be all motherly just because he felt bad that he had moved and let-

"No."

~:~*SN*~:~-~:~*SN*~:~-~:~*SN*~:~

Sasuke felt Naruto tense suddenly under his arm and he instinctively pulled him tighter, anticipating a stumble. But Naruto didn't stumble, in fact, he stopped walking altogether.

"Let me go." Naruto's voice had no conviction, just a buzz of uncertainty. Sasuke tried to fight down his smirk. It was all coming together now, Sakura's instructions about the stream, her pushing him out of the way, even… trees.

Was he the tree? He couldn't stop the grin now. If Sakura had been teasing Naruto about admiring trees and he was the tree than logically Naruto admired him. Which meant Sakura knew something about Naruto that he did not want disclosed around Sasuke, something _about_Sasuke.

"I said no." Sasuke replied. Naruto was growing increasingly more panicked. Did he understand that Sasuke had figured it out?

"Damn it Sasuke stop being an ass!" Sasuke turned, ready to make some crude comment, but the moment he met Naruto's eyes he stopped. Something he had very little experience with gripped his heart and he let go without realizing it.

Naruto liked him. Naruto. Liked. Him. It was a wonderfully pleasant thought but also a terrifying one. Sure, all the facts pointed toward a mutual attraction but was he sure enough to make some sort of move? All the logic in his mind was pointing to 'of course' but something even more terrifying was holding him back. What if he was wrong? What if Naruto admired him like a role model and was embarrassed because of that? What if he really did think of Sasuke as family?

What if Sasuke liked Naruto more than Naruto liked him?

Sasuke had never been as openly adored as Naruto. Sure, lots of people admired him for his good looks, brains and money but that wasn't true friendship. And all the friends he did have put up with Sasuke, cared about Sasuke more than he'd ever openly admit to caring about them. The people who hated him, well, he either ignored them or loathed them with a passion they couldn't think to match. But he had never, ever cared this much about someone and feared they didn't feel the same way.

Sasuke knew Naruto laid out all his emotions all the time. They took beatings occasionally as was expected but never diminished in their blinding intensity. But what if everything Naruto had for him was just… not enough.

Naruto would be okay, he'd bounce back and continue to give Sasuke all the affection he could but Sasuke didn't think he'd be able to do the same. He'd never lost something like this. He'd never overflowed someone with his feelings and watched half of them drip away.

"Sasuke, you okay? Did something sting you? You've gone pale… well, paler than usual. Sasuke? Do you want me to go get Tsuna-"

"No. Stay. I'm… I'm okay." Sasuke straightened up and flicked his bangs out of his eyes. He tried to look away but Naruto bounded into his vision.

"Are you sure? I can run over and bring her here if you need help."

"I'm fine. I was just thinking." He let out a quick sigh and started walking toward his cottage.

"About?" Naruto hovered near his side and Sasuke couldn't help but feel better. He was being irrational. Naruto had not refused him. Naruto would never push him away. If he didn't have the same feelings, well, then Sasuke would just have to live with it like he'd lived with everything else. But there was just as much, if not more chance that Naruto did like him back and if that were so he was acting like a drama queen for no reason.

"I was thinking about trees." Sasuke watched the pink creep back onto Naruto's cheeks. "and how whenever you go and try to prune them they always get the best of you."

"Like… dropping branches on your head?" Naruto tried a small chuckled but it came out rather frightened.

"Something like that." Sasuke agreed, taking the step up to the small porch of Naruto's cabin. It was odd, taking only one step. His house had dozens of steps, always in large ornate staircases.

"It reminds me of the time that I was trying to get the frisbee out of that tree and Kakashi walked underneath right as I-" But like this cabin, Naruto's house only had one, a little concrete porch where Iruka liked to set a potted plant. Sasuke mused that maybe when he was older he'd want a house with only one step, either you made it, or you tripped and fell on your face. But at least you'd be in the doorway, right?

"-and he threatened to suspend me just because I broke-"

"Naruto." Sasuke grabbed Naruto's hands, his eyes catching blue before they could look away. His heart was beating a rapid pulse against his chest, his mind was a whirlwind of thoughts but his voice was smooth.

"Yes…" Naruto suddenly looked scared. Not pre-exam-jitter scared or even there-is-some-creepy-guy-stalking-us scared. His eyes were wide and his hands shaky, but he did not let go as Sasuke brought their linked hands around his waist and placed Naruto's palms on his back. He didn't step away as Sasuke placed one hand on Naruto's shoulder and brought the other to his face. And he actually closed his eyes in anticipation as Sasuke brought his head down those few inches to meet Naruto's lips.

~:~*SN*~:~-~:~*SN*~:~-~:~*SN*~:~

No?

Naruto felt his muscles clench in fear and he stopped walking. Why was Sasuke refusing to let him go? Had his shouts of pain actually been convincing? No, that couldn't be it. Sasuke hadn't believed him that time he had broken his leg. Sasuke would have made him walk all the way to the nurse if Sakura hadn't demanded Sasuke carry him. So then why would he refuse to stop helping now?

"Let me go." Naruto knew he didn't sound like he really meant it. As confused as he was he couldn't bring himself to actually push Sasuke away.

If Sakura had never come they would be in the cabin now, Sasuke watching Naruto scrabble around trying to find something to bring to the barbeque so his excuse to leave made sense. He would still feel upset at not being able to divulge his feelings, but the time alone with Sasuke would be treasured just the same.

"I said no." Naruto actually tried to pull away this time, scared that Sasuke would see his blush. He wanted to shut off his mind so it would stop showing him images of Sasuke from his dreams where things were much simpler. He just jumped Sasuke, or Sasuke jumped him and that was that. The feelings were swift, profoundly passionate and always mutual.

"Damn it Sasuke stop being an ass!" Naruto was ready with his best Sasuke-imitation glare but knew it never reached his face. Sasuke's expression had changed completely and his arms had suddenly become limp, falling to his sides and leaving Naruto to stagger a few steps, not used to supporting his full weight.

He had been clamoring to make Sasuke let him go but now that he had, Naruto wished only to be back in those arms. Had his insistence really made Sasuke that upset that he would turn pale? If so what did that mean? Despite his anger at his own confusion over Sasuke's feelings, Naruto felt something warm bubble up in his chest. And yet, Sasuke continued to look sickly. Was something truly wrong?

"Sasuke, you okay? Did something sting you? You've gone pale… well, paler than usual. Sasuke? Do you want me to go get Tsuna-"

"No. Stay. I'm… I'm okay." Stay. A single word had never sounded so beautiful. He knew Sasuke hadn't meant it like that but he just couldn't help it. Sasuke wanted him to stay and he would. He would not leave until he had finally conveyed what he had been feeling for the longest time. But, wanting to make sure Sasuke was okay, he spoke once more.

"Are you sure? I can run over and bring her here if you need help."

"I'm fine. I was just thinking." Naruto rolled this over in his mind, his heartbeat starting to flutter as he noticed his cabin only a few meters away.

"About?" Sasuke's color had returned and Naruto breathed a sigh of relief. All he had to do was keep talking. Things had to remain genial until they were inside. Then he would say something. For now he would try everything he could to make sure they did not fall into the same pattern as they had earlier in their walk.

"I was thinking about trees." Naruto couldn't help but blush. "And how whenever you go and try to prune them they always get the best of you."

"Like… dropping branches on your head?" _Just keep talking and laughing. This is what you always do. Be silly, be stupid, just be _you_. The you Sasuke wanted to hold in that line, the you Sasuke laughs with, the you Sasuke admits to being his best friend, the you Sasuke might, if there is any luck in this world, like back._

"Something like that." Sasuke stepped up onto the porch and Naruto followed, feeling light-headed as his eyes swept past the door.

"It reminds me of the time that I was trying to get the frisbee out of that tree and Kakashi walked underneath right as I kicked that-" Naruto didn't really know what he was saying. Sasuke was staring at him. Not the stare that he used when he was annoyed, or the one where he was concerned. Not even the one where he was genuinely interested in what Naruto had to say. No, this stare was new and excruciatingly exhilarating.

"-and he threatened to suspend me just because I broke-"

"Naruto." Sasuke's voice was so calm, deep and smooth that Naruto felt his own words catch in his throat. Sasuke's hands took hold of his and at once he was powerless to move his own muscles. Sasuke's eyes pinned him to the spot, as demanding as his voice had been.

Naruto felt his blood tingling in his veins. It was like being so ill he was too weak to move and yet it felt so incredible that Naruto thought he would tingle and shake until he broke apart into billions of shivering pieces.

"Yes…" His mind struggled to catch up with the situation. He was supposed to be the one confessing to Sasuke. They were only a little bit away from the door. Yet, his arms were being placed around Sasuke's waist in a close, loving embrace. Naruto was aware of Sasuke gripping his arm, as if he thought Naruto would try to run away. How could he run? He was barely holding himself together standing still. If he tried to move at all surely he would dissolve into the air.

Then there was a gentle touch on his cheek and Sasuke's face was so close Naruto couldn't focus on it anymore. His eyes slipped shut and he could do nothing but feel. It was as if he could focus on each nerve and hear its individual cry of pleasure at being able to touch Sasuke like this.

He couldn't stop moving forward or the small sigh that fell from his lips as they brushed Sasuke's.

~:~*SN*~:~-~:~*SN*~:~-~:~*SN*~:~

As Sasuke felt their mouths align, the tempest of his mind calmed to a contented hum.

Naruto's lips weren't perfectly soft, but they were full and enticing, still one moment then moving tentatively the next. Sasuke had kissed people before in a foolish attempt to be more social and had met with more than one expert in the field. It was obvious to him that this was something relatively new to Naruto, his uncertainty clouding his instinct.

Yet, Sasuke knew this kiss bested the others by far. It was one thing to simply touch mouth to mouth, another to feel all of his emotion pushing at the back of his lips, begging to be poured forth into Naruto.

But first he had to know if this was something they both wanted. If he stopped now, there might be a way to convince Naruto that the kiss didn't mean anything. His best friend was not stupid by any means but, an emotional being himself, had a tendency to overlook other peoples uncontrolled surrender to emotions.

Sasuke pulled his head back, his eyes drifting open. He expected Naruto to pull away, no matter if he wanted the kiss or not. He expected shyness, uncertainty, maybe even anger and thrown punches.

Instead, as they began to part, Naruto mumbled an alarmed "no!" against Sasuke's mouth and leaned forward quickly, pushing their lips together once again, his hands tightening in Sasuke's shirt.

Not one to decline a gift from the gods, Sasuke slid his hand into bright blond hair, pulled Naruto's head back gently and gladly partook in what was offered.

Sasuke knew kissing protocol. He had been there when Sakura and Ino had educated an eager Naruto and an uncomfortable Hinata in the "ways of romance". First kisses were supposed to be fairly chaste. A brush of the lips, a few seconds of contact, then done. No moaning, no biting no tongue.

He tried, he really tried but damn, it was hard! Naruto was all eager mouth and clutching hands and squirming delight. In order to keep that delicious writhing firmly against him, Sasuke slide his hands down to Naruto's waist. He both cursed and praised Naruto for never being able to stay still as the feeling of their bodies molding together sent shivers through every nerve.

And was that…? Naruto had just made a noise. It wasn't a moan per say but it was definitely something vocal. A small whimper maybe, or a sharp gasp. Well, if Naruto was going to break the rules then the hell with it! Sasuke parted his lips, begging to any nearby mind reading entity that Naruto would allow him access to that enticing mouth of his.

For one terrible second Sasuke was sure he would be denied. Naruto stiffened, his lips compressed. But then, like ice in the mid-day sun, Naruto melted, surging into Sasuke's mouth, evaporating until every crevice was overwhelmed.

His arms pulled Naruto tighter, feeling muscles loose strength under his fingertips. Not that Sasuke was entirely sure he could keep himself standing, despite his usual composure. Up until this moment, he had known that he could handle anything with a chilling frown and a flick of his perfect hair. Perfect hair that was now in a complete state of disarray, tangled around Naruto's roaming hands.

Well, he still had the frown to mark him as an ideal Uchiha and thus a man very much in control of himself. Or would have had it if his mouth was not occupied with a much more rewarding endeavor, namely discovering every part of Naruto Uzamaki's thus far uncharted body.

The rules of first kisses still vaguely resonating in his mind, though they had already broken two, Sasuke decided it would be best to keep his exploration to Naruto's lips and the surrounding area. He nibbled across Naruto's jaw (why not just break them all?), only to slowly kiss his way back. Naruto made that same indefinable noise again and Sasuke shivered.

Though the response he was receiving was beyond his greatest hopes, it wouldn't do to scare Naruto off. When confronted with something he didn't quite understand, his best friend would generally retaliate by either punching, screaming, or running away.

Punching would hurt like hell. Sasuke knew in his muddled state that he would not be able to block anything Naruto threw at such a close range. Screaming would alert everyone within a five mile radius. Far from fearing he would be branded as a pervert, Sasuke worried that he would be removed from camp activities which would result in the need to come back next year and do the whole damn thing over again to fulfill his requirement.

Running away would be the worst of the three. Naruto alone would jump to the most insane conclusions about what had been going on and would probably come back insisting that Sasuke was an alien trying to suck out his brain through his skin by means of his mouth. Though Sasuke would quickly set things straight, the thought that Sasuke might not be of this world would haunt Naruto until his dying day. Getting Naruto to be in a relationship with Sasuke was hard enough, getting him to be in one with Sasuke-who-might-be-an-extraterrestrial-who-eats-brains would be near impossible.

The thought of a relationship was what finally pulled Sasuke away, his lips leaving Naruto's for a second before returning to lightly place one last close mouthed kiss. This time it was Naruto who trembled, the quivers bringing a pink blush to his already flushed cheeks. A small grin crept onto Naruto's face.

Sasuke wanted nothing more than to taste that smile but he knew in order to convince Naruto he wanted something more permanent, words were needed, not more lip to lip contact. Not to say all touching was going to end. Sasuke's arms, which were still firmly around Naruto's waist, loosened only so Naruto could put a little space between them if he desired. Fingers still played with Sasuke's hair, apparently fascinated despite the faraway look in their owner's eyes.

"Naruto…" Sasuke began, knowing that if he didn't start speaking now he wouldn't be able to stop himself from skipping the heart to heart and going right back to where they left off. It felt so good, _so good_to be holding the other man and Sasuke wanted Naruto to know that.

It wasn't all sexual tension; bubbling hormones and intoxicated blood. Yes Sasuke wanted to kiss Naruto, touch him where no one else was allowed, see and feel him underneath him. And he had not forgotten his earlier thoughts of tying Naruto up or the intense pressure that had been building in his lower abdomen just seconds before. But this moment, just_ this_, both of them smiling simply because they were together, was perfection.

Studying French history in Sasuke's room until three in the morning, getting coffee and vanilla ice cream for lunch in the park, sitting together on the almost empty subway every Monday, tracing the big dipper on the dorm roof, those were the moments that made Sasuke's heart tighten and beat in time with Naruto's often present laughter.

He wanted those kinds of moments to continue for eternity, exactly the same…except Naruto would sit a bit closer, letting their arms brush, or they'd buy just one large ice cream with the same ease as they had purchased two small. And instead of keeping his gaze locked on the sky, every once in a while Sasuke would glance over and catch Naruto's eye and he would _know_and Naruto would _know_ and time would _know _and stand still just for them.

"You going to say something or am I going to have to start talking about plants again?" Naruto asked, his voice light, the smile on his face evident in his tone. Sasuke laughed, refusing to allow himself to hold anything back.

"I think we've had enough talk about plants to last a lifetime." He responded once his laughter had subsided. Naruto nodded. There was another moment of silence, Sasuke staring at the ground, trying to figure out how best to approach the conversation, Naruto scanning his face intently, his smile still dancing on his lips.

"Naruto I-." Sasuke began, ready to spurt something about how much he cared about the other man and wanted him to know that Sasuke was not going to walk away and pretend nothing had happened. But Naruto spoke first.

~:~*SN*~:~-~:~*SN*~:~-~:~*SN*~:~

Kissing Sasuke was, well… Naruto wasn't certain.

He was pretty sure the first second their lips met he'd blacked out from emotional overload. His mind had gone from 'huummm… Sasuke's touching me… and it feels so niiiice' to 'oh my god Sasuke is touching me _kissing me _and he's so sexy and good at this and I don't know what to do!' to '…….….' in a matter of nanoseconds.

What Naruto did know once he had awoken from his momentary shock was that he didn't want Sasuke to stop. Ever.

Who needs air and food and all that other stuff? Psh, scientists. Let them kiss Sasuke for one second and they'd agree with him that the only thing one needs for survival are those talented lips.

Not that anyone else would ever have the chance since Naruto was determined never to let Sasuke take another breath. Years of wanting and waiting and never being able to tell Sasuke how he really felt were being poured into this kiss. Bottling up his emotions had been torture for him, a man who always wore them like a flashing neon hat with giant red arrows that read 'look at me! See how I'm feeling!'.

When Sasuke began to pull away every fiber of Naruto's being was screaming 'No!'. It was only after their lips were immediately reunited that he realized the word had slipped out of his mouth.

Let Sasuke think he was being girly and clingy and stupid. Later he would battle for control. Later he would tease and laugh and make Sasuke work for it. But for this kiss, their first kiss, he just wanted to finally believe that Sakura had been right all along.

Not that Naruto was getting the impression that Sasuke was thinking anything more complex than 'must violate willing idiot'. His skilled fingers had slipped into Naruto's hair and were gently tugging in a way that made Naruto squirm. Sasuke's body was firm against his, the heat between them excruciatingly pleasurable. Naruto pulled himself closer, relishing in the way Sasuke immediately moved his hands to Naruto's waist to assist.

As Sasuke's hands tightened around his back, one finger grazed the skin under Naruto's shirt, right above the top of his jeans. It was like Sasuke had tickled him, except that instead of sending a shock through his system it sent liquid fire and instead of pulling away and giggling, Naruto arched closer and gasped.

Well, he thought it was a gasp. Maybe a very moany gasp. He refused to categorize it as a whimper. Whatever it was Sasuke loved it. Without warning legs shifted so hips met hips and Sasuke's chastely closed mouth opened.

Naruto tensed in surprise, but at the thought of kissing Sasuke like that, in a way ten times better than what they were doing already, he opened his mouth in another moan which was lost at once to Sasuke's delving tongue.

Naruto was sure too much blood had left his brain because certain functions were shutting down, like his ability to stand. Not that he really minded. Half his thoughts were with Sasuke's devilish tongue, the other with his own hands combing through ebony locks.

Teasing Sasuke about his girly shampoo had always been a favorite pastime for Naruto. He'd admitted it smelled fantastic (to his own mind and once an equally as drunk Kiba) but the purple bottle and female-dominant commercials often outweighed that fact when Naruto brought it up in conversation, or rather, when he was bored and wanted to bother Sasuke as much as possible.

Naruto vowed he would never make fun of that shampoo again. Okay, that was a stretch. But he would never doubt the ever-smiling glossy haired lady on the TV that proclaimed her favorite shampoo gave a 'crystal shine and silky feel to every kind of hair!'. He didn't think it was possible for hair to feel this soft. His certainly never did. Even Sakura, who took great pride and care in her unusual locks, never had hair that felt this smooth.

Naruto didn't know if Sasuke knew his mind had wavered from their intense kiss or if he was just determined to break every one of Sakura and Ino's 'first kiss rules'. Either way, he slid his lips from Naruto's mouth and feathered kisses over to his jaw.

Okay, revision of his earlier statement. Maybe he would stop kissing Sasuke, but only if Sasuke kept kissing _him_ as compensation. It didn't matter where really.

Naruto's breath came out in broken gasps as Sasuke drew a small line of bits up to his ear, then left open mouthed kisses on the way back. Sasuke must have been proud of his handiwork because his lips tilted upwards in a smirk as Naruto let out another not-whimper.

God, if Sasuke kept up like this… well, Naruto wasn't sure what he'd do but it would involve a certain piece of furniture about ten feet into the cabin. Or a very cold shower.

But Sasuke seemed to be cooling down. His kisses were longer, deeper, but less forceful too. While he continued doing a wonderful job of making Naruto weak at the knees, Naruto could tell he was also thinking very hard.

Sasuke pressed one last, lingering kiss on Naruto's lips. Naruto shuddered in delight as his glazed eyes met Sasuke's. What he saw there made him blush. It was the same look he imagined in his dreams, one both of lust and care. He couldn't help his mouth as it rose into a smile or his fingers as they playfully twirled a strand of inky hair.

"Naruto…" Oh no. He knew that voice. It was usually followed by 'I have something really serious to say but it is also rather emotional for me so I'm going to try to keep my icy composure while trying to make the information less stressful to you even though I won't succeed' or something. Damn Sasuke for over-analyzing everything! They were obviously on the same page about their new relationship. And here everyone thought the oh-so-silent Sasuke was the master of reading body language. Ha!

Did he really think Naruto would continue something if he didn't want it? Did he believe that Naruto had doubts about Sasuke, even after said stoic bastard had just showed more emotion than he had displayed in the last five years combined?

Naruto waited a few minutes, watching the confusion and desperation play across Sasuke's face, then he decided to spare him.

"Hey bastard, is it okay if I come over to your place next break? I know we have a few more weeks but I want to tell Iruka before he buys out all the supermarkets in anticipation for my arrival." Sasuke couldn't speak for a moment. In those two sentences Naruto was able to convey what Sasuke was trying to prepare into a speech. He didn't have to say anything more about their budding relationship, it was clear from the look in Naruto's eyes and the would-be-normal question that they both felt the same.

"Hn." Sasuke pretended to ponder the suggestion. "Only if you promise I can spend next Christmas at your house. I miss the cookies."

"Hey! You don't even like cookies!" Naruto's eyes slitted in mock distrust.

"That doesn't mean I can't miss them." It was Naruto's turn to tilt his head to the side and act as if the choice were a hard one.

"Fine, but I call dibs on all the pie and the spoon lickings _and_putting the star on top of the tree." Sasuke chuckled, Naruto always ate the entire pie and put the star on the tree. As for licking well… Sasuke would think of an equivalent trade for that later.

"As long as I don't have to go caroling we have a deal." Sasuke watched Naruto's face grow, if it were possible, even more delighted.

"Deal." Naruto leaned forward and quickly pecked Sasuke on the lips, sealing their arrangement. A second after this he blushed lightly. Sasuke thought it was endearing that after all they had just done, Naruto was nervous about something so small. Lifting his hand, Sasuke stroked his fingers through Naruto's hair, watching the others eyes close in pleasure.

As much as he wanted to stand and caress Naruto's head for the rest of the afternoon (or better yet pull him into the cabin and move his hand to more productive places), Sasuke knew Sakura's excuse for their absence would only last so long. Inevitably Ino would come looking for him, or Kiba would need Naruto for a two-on-two basketball match against Lee and Shino. Sasuke wasn't going to hide their new relationship, but he wanted things to come out on his and Naruto's terms. He lowered his hand and watch blue eyes flutter open.

"We should be getting back to the barbeque." Sasuke's voice was low and he was unable to keep an edge of grumpiness out of his tone. Naruto noticed it and laughed.

"Are you sure you want to go back?" He teased, already pulling away and turning to head back to the center of camp. "I hear Ino's been saving her new low cut v-neck shirt for this very occasion. I'm sure she'll want your personal _view_on it." Sasuke's revolted look turned to a smirk as he swiftly pulled Naruto back to fall flush against him, chest to chest.

"Well then, I'll just have to use you as a human shield."

"I can't stand in front of you forever." There was breathiness in Naruto's joking tone. "If she can't catch you at the barbeque she's probably going to ambush you when you come back to your cabin to sleep." Sasuke's smirk grew.

"I'll just have to keep you with me." Sasuke tightened his hold as Naruto's voice grew fainter, his objections losing their power.

"There are no locks on the doors, she'll be able to come in."

"Wouldn't that be a shame." Sasuke too spoke in low tones and his head dipped down. If Naruto was so worried about Ino bothering them at the barbeque then the problem could easily be solved by not going in the first place. Sakura could come up with another lie, right? And if they still came, well, it wouldn't be that big of a deal.

"I…" Naruto seemed hesitant to speak. "I have some rope in my cabin from the rock climbing exercise. We could tie-." His voice cut off into a squeak as Sasuke pulled him toward the door.

"-No! Sasuke you horny bastard, stop! It was a joke! We have to get back to everyone else! I'm hungry! Kiba's going to eat all the hotdogs! I have a craving for mustard! Let gooo!"

Sasuke felt Naruto slip his hand out from his and in a moment the other man was running wildly up the hill. Sasuke's smile only widened, he'd always been the faster of the two.

~:~*SN*~:~-~:~*SN*~:~-~:~*SN*~:~

"Hey bastard, is it okay if I come over to your place next break? I know we have a few more weeks but I want to tell Iruka before he buys out all the supermarkets in anticipation for my arrival." Naruto made sure his voice was nonchalant, as if he and Sasuke had not just shared their very first, very passionate kiss in the middle of mandatory youth-tastic camp.

Sasuke's face morphed into something beautiful as realization finally hit him. Naruto knew it was as if he had said 'yes Sasuke, I do like you very much and I wish to ensure the continuation of this highly pleasant activity'.

"Hn. Only if you promise I can spend next Christmas at your house. I miss the cookies."

"Hey! You don't even like cookies!" Finally! Real witty banter.

"That doesn't mean I can't miss them."

"Fine, but I call dibs on all the pie and the spoon lickings _and_putting the star on top of the tree." He knew Sasuke didn't like pie, but he was always trying to be sneaky and steal the star first. Or at least he had tried the previous year and would have been successful if Naruto had not tackled him into the nativity scene.

"As long as I don't have to go caroling we have a deal." Sasuke was going to say 'yes' of course, but hearing the words made everything feel more real. Naruto wished Christmas was the next day.

"Deal." Without thinking Naruto leaned forward, kissing Sasuke lightly. It was a craving that had plagued him for years. Physical affection was rooted deeply in Naruto's emotional psyche. Every time he saw other couples do little things, like hold hands or send each other secret winks his heart yearned to do the same with someone.

One night when he had been out to dinner with Sasuke and Sakura the couple in the table across from theirs had been deciding on baby names. When they had come to an agreement the woman kissed her husband then explained to him that deals sealed with kisses between people who loved each other were the strongest and the most special. Naruto had immediately glanced at Sasuke and an aching desire had flared in his heart. Would they ever sit at a candlelit table, making special promises bound by love?

Remembering this made Naruto's cheeks flare pink. They had just shared their first kiss, well, kisses, not declared undying adoration! Geez Naruto, be a man!

His being a sap didn't seem to bother Sasuke though; he simply raised a hand and stroked the hair back from Naruto's forehead. If Naruto could have purred he would have. This was another simple thing he had been craving. The perfect moment passed all too soon. Sasuke withdrew his hand and waited until their eyes had met to speak.

"We should be getting back to the barbeque." The laugher sprang from Naruto's mouth unbidden. It was so obvious that going to spend time with other people was the last thing Sasuke wanted to do.

"Are you sure you want to go back?" Naruto turned, knowing that Sasuke was right. They had to go or someone would come looking for them. "I hear Ino's been saving her new low cut v-neck shirt for this very occasion. I'm sure she'll want your personal _view_on it." Naruto had expected the revolted look on Sasuke's face. He had not expected to be spun around and come nose to nose with the other man.

"Well then, I'll just have to use you as a human shield."

"I can't stand in front of you forever." But god he wished he could. "If she can't catch you at the barbeque she's probably going to ambush you when you come back to your cabin to sleep."

"I'll just have to keep you with me." Naruto both hoped and feared that was a promise.

"There are no locks on the doors; she'll be able to come in." Naruto's voice was growing steadily softer as his mind supplied images of Ino walking in on something that would surely scar her for life.

"Wouldn't that be a shame." Sasuke lowered his head and Naruto was about to raise his to meet Sasuke's when another thought flitted into his mind, a very devious thought. Yes he would love to partake in another steamy make-out session but he had promised that the next time Sasuke would have to work for it.

"I…" He tried to sound innocently nervous even though he was cackling inside. "I have some rope in my cabin from the rock climbing exercise. We could tie-." Ah! He didn't expect Sasuke to respond that violently. Getting dragged into the cabin to be tied up and molested was not part of his plan! He _knew_Sasuke was a kinky bastard!

"Hey! What do you think you're doing! No! Sasuke you horny bastard, stop! It was a joke! We have to get back to everyone else!" It wasn't working. More excuses! "I'm hungry! Kiba's going to eat all the hotdogs! I have a craving for mustard! Let gooo!"

He managed to slip his hand out from Sasuke's and instantly sprinted away. So what if Sasuke was a faster runner, it didn't matter if the prey wanted to be caught… eventually.

~:~*SN*~:~-~:~*SN*~:~-~:~*SN*~:~

The beach tree next to Naruto's cabin shook slightly, as if caught by a breeze. Two distinct laughs filtered out from between the leaves, one a chuckle of rustling wheat, the other lilting, like petals tumbling from the branch.

"I'd say our plan worked, wouldn't you sensei?" Another larger rustle and two figures dropped from the tree. Sakura, beaming from ear to ear and Kakashi, face already stuck in one of his favorite novels.

"I believe so." They glanced at one another. After a moment, Kakashi put his book away and offered Sakura his arm.

"Shall I escort you to the 'mandatory' lunch at this fine 'mandatory' camp so we may see the fruit of our labor?"

"Please." She took his arm, but not before throwing a large tub of superglue onto the porch. They were going to need a way to keep the door closed if Sasuke was thinking of using the rope for… other purposes.

* * *

a.n.: Thank you so much for reading! Please leave a review if you liked it and/or have any suggestions!


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